Hi.

I'm Bri Garbani, a designer + photographer living in San Diego, California. It's here that I express my passion for dogs, design + DIY through writing + photography. If you like what you see, you'll want to check back often as I have a constant need to create + Native Blonde is my prime creative outlet.

Nov 10

Nov 10 Crafty Costumes

Year after year I debate about what I should dress as for Halloween and this year was no exception. I prefer to make my own costumes; therefore quite a bit of planning, pattern making and shopping for materials must take place before I have a finished product in hand. I like to challenge myself with each design, however, I don’t want to make something so complicated that it takes too much time to produce. After all, it is an outfit that will only be worn for one night or possibly two if Halloween falls on a weekend like it did this year for 2015.

In past years my homemade costumes were Poison Ivy...

Ms. Claus with two very naughty reindeer that did not like wearing the antlers I made them and Avatar. Unfortunately, I do not have photos of the creation process for these two, but they started off the same - a pile of fabric made into something wearable.

I made each of these nearly from scratch (time to get out that sewing machine!) plus the addition of wigs, face paint and other accessories to accentuate the look. Years before when I used to purchase costumes (or rather my parents purchased), I went as classic characters that most people see on this annual ghoulish holiday – and in some cases, I wore the same outfit two or three years in a row. I’ve been a pirate, a witch, a devil, a black cat, a ballerina, a cowgirl, a ghost and a clown among other things, so I wanted to do something a little more glamorous for my 29th Halloween. This year I chose to be a mermaid.

Ever since the hubby came into my life, we’ve had four Halloween holidays together, two of which we’ve dressed up for. We like our costumes to complement each other but not necessarily match or have to go together to understand who we are going as. For example, Poison Ivy and The Joker are both evil villains from the Batman movies. A pirate and a mermaid both have a nautical theme and both live at sea. You get the idea.

Please forgive the poor photography on most of these images - several of them were purely taken as documentation before my DSLR days and I never expected to feel compelled to include them on my future blog! Do you like to craft your own costumes? How do you gather inspiration, what does your creative process look like? I hope you've enjoyed my DIY Halloween costumes to date and I'm curious to see yours too. Have a Happy and safe Halloween!